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Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Sloping Agricultural Land Technology (SALT) in the mountains of Léogâne--Part II

... the best thing you or I or any of the team I work with can do that will
make a difference is to find and keep the faith. Part of that is the
faith that these communities already have the answers for their
challenges today and their children's challenges tomorrow, deep inside
of them.

On Tuesday, May 27th, the day after we finished the workshop at Luxène's home, we walked down, up, over, down and around and around to
Serge's home, about four hours of hiking. The
project mule, "Patience" carried our luggage and some tools. We carried the A-level and a pick handle.

When we reached Serge's house, after resting an hour or two, we walked out to the field where we would be doing the workshop.

This is Serge's first
choice for a field to install the SALT system. It was land so steep, it
terrified me just to try to stand there, let alone swinging a hoe or pick. This is Herve coming down from
that field, on his bottom.

This is Serge's second choice for a field. Can you see any difference? Perhaps not, but this field actually did not scare
me to stand in it. However, walking across this and an adjacent field to get
back to Serge's house after the initial visit did pretty much terrify
me. At one point the next day, while crossing the adjacent field to get to where the participants were waiting, I nearly froze up. As in, "Send in a
helicopter because I am not/cannot take a single step." Having my
"students" watching from the next field, I believe, is what kept me
putting one foot in front of the other.

As I told
Chavannes, the director of MPP when I saw him briefly the day after we finished the workshop, "When you work with rural farmers in
Haiti, and you let them lead you, you really never know where exactly
you are going to end up."

Aside from the steepness of the field, the work progressed more or less in the same way. Cutting bamboo stakes....

....staking out the distances between the hedgerows. One difference the steepness made here was that the hedgerows were much, much closer. We got to that one meter drop in less than four meters from the last hedgerow.

Preparing the seed bed...

Serge (white and brown shirt) working with Luxène (red shirt) to lay out the double furrows to plant the two lines of trees. One other difference was that we soaked the seeds overnight to give them a head start. Since we were at 300 meters above sea level, rather than the 1,000, moisture is less predictable. We also covered the beds with stalks of pigeon pea to help maintain moisture and give the seeds the best chance possible for proper germination.

As we did in the workshop at Luxène's home, the second day we worked on building our own A-level from bamboo. This time the participants used an old battery with a nail in it instead of the rock.

Calibrating the A-level.

Another difference in the second workshop was that we had three young women participate, Mireille (sitting) and Enite, as well as Ullia (not pictured). The were full participants, wielding hoes and planting seed up in the mountains alongside of the six or seven men. Mireille participated together with her husband, the first time he has been a visible part of the yard garden work.

We also had Andre Ceus, from MRPST (Farmer's without land calling for their rights), a farmers organization from the high mountains of Verettes. All told, counting PC(USA), we had folks from five different organizations, including four different farmer organizations--MPP, ODEPOL, ODEVPRE and MRPST.

Two young boys being raised by their grandmother, Merina, down the hill from Luxène's home in Bwa Nèf Matye.

In the end, what are we about? Was this workshop really about starting a new agricultural revolution in the Léogâne mountains? Not really. What it was really about was about transforming lives, starting with my own.

Part of that transformation is recognizing the enormous gifts present among the farming communities in places like Bwa Nèf Matye, or Yeye. There is strength there, and a great deal of good humor. And skills--so many skills. What do I have to offer than can compare with what they already have? Not much, actually.

As a team coming out of MPP's long history and tradition, we can share a good idea or two, maybe a key scientific principle that turns some things around. With the training I have from CHE, we can offer honest and sincere Bible-based reflections that will shine a new light on what being a Christ follower is all about. But in the end, the best thing you or I or any of the team I work with can do that will make a difference is to find and keep the faith. Part of that is the faith that these communities already have the answers for their challenges today and their children's challenges tomorrow, deep inside of them. Believing too, without doubt, that God the Creator has always been present and has never abandoned them, nor ever will.